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Paul-ny
User level: Level 1 (23 points)

How to get a PDF in iPhone's Files app into the Books app?

PDFs that I Airdrop into my iPhone go to the Files app. I want certain ones in the Books app (search function works better, for one thing), and until recently it wasn't hard to accomplish but now I don't see a way to do it.


Originally, airdropped PDFs would just go into Books.


Then they started going into the Files app, but selecting a file and clicking the Share button would give a page with a strip of app icons across the top, one of which was Books.


Then Books was missing from that strip, but the More button at the end of it led to a vertical list of apps to move the file to, and Books was one of them.


Now Books isn't on the list, and Editing the list doesn't seem to allow adding apps to it, just turning on or off ones that are already there.


(clicking on the PDF in Files now opens a "Smart Printer" app that I don't want to have anything to do with.)


How can I get a PDF in my iphone's Files app into the Books app?

Posted on Sep 18, 2026 10:14 AM

4 replies

MrHoffman
User level: Level 10 (169,253 points)

Sep 21, 2026 3:16 PM in response to Paul-ny

Books is available in the more distant parts of the Share menu on a local iOS 26.recent iPhone.


Try first deleting the Books app, force-restarting the iPhone, and then re-download the Books app, and try again.


Failing that, back up, reset, and re-load the phone.



Paul-ny Author
User level: Level 1 (23 points)

Sep 21, 2026 2:48 PM in response to picas

I tried a forced restart and it made no difference. (Should have realized it because I very recently upgraded from a considerably older system, and that didn't help this problem.) I have Applecare and called with the issue, got an AI voice that seemed to understand the problem; after instructing me on sharing from Files to Books (looking for Books in the share menu) it told me that it is not possible to share from Files to Books if Books isn't in the menu. Can this be true?

picas
User level: Level 7 (21,779 points)

Sep 21, 2026 4:53 PM in response to Paul-ny

If it's not in the menu then no it wouldn't be possible to share (but it should be in the menu). You don't need AppleCare to get help with software issues – use Official Apple Support I wonder if it's related to airdrop? Have you tried sharing a pdf that hasn't been airdropped?


Originally posted at discussions.apple.com/thread/256359877